'Arcadia Project' launched: Unique Game Development Concept!

[StormcloudCreations]

'The Arcadia Project' is live! This project
is basically the very first fully community supported, community development-assisted and funded PC game project ever done, on a level never before attempted, as we'll be starting from the GROUND UP. You can help us name the game itself, suggest added and tweaked features, submit 'stories' and ideas, and vote in polls for new features, all on our special members only forum.

We'll even have a special page for pre-order members ONLY that will allow you to download micro-builds of the game, as its being created!

The game itself: You can recruit adventurers, view detailed stats on their
abilities: age, birthday, height, weight, everything. Build a camp of 6
adventurers, and put together parties of 4 and send them on dangerous quests to many realms, in search of riches. They can get hurt, killed, possessed, or a host of other things, and you may be offered choices in the story according to what happens on their quest. You must sign them to contracts (called 'pacts') to keep them working for you, all the while keeping yourself in the black financially. The game is intended to be a "Championship Manager" combined with a RPG sensibility, complete with adventurer 'personalites' that emerge over time. Sharp, crisp and unique graphics/interface and music are planned to be included as well.

We plan on selling the game for $19.95 when its released. We're offering a limited time chance to get in this special community development opportunity for only $16.95, $3.00 off the normal price! Once you order, you'll receive a link where the forum is located, and you can register there if you wish, and be approved to participate. This also entitles you to a full version of the game once its finished.

URL for details and payment links:
http://www.stormcloudcreations.com/arcproject.htm

[Hiro_Antagonist]

FWIW, I'm a big believer in screenshots, and I never even download a demo w/o seeing them, much less pre-pay for something. I have found that I can learn 90% of what I need to know, with remarkable accuracy, by looking at a game's UI. (Non-UI "eye-candy" screenshots do me no good. =)

I wish you the best with your project, and I'm excited to learn more. But I encourage you to post screenies sooner rather than later to get people like me excited. =)

-Hiro_Antagonist

[StormcloudCreations]

FWIW, I'm a big believer in screenshots, and I never even download a demo w/o seeing them, much less pre-pay for something. I have found that I can learn 90% of what I need to know, with remarkable accuracy, by looking at a game's UI. (Non-UI "eye-candy" screenshots do me no good. =)
-Hiro_Antagonist

People seem to have trouble with this: The game itself hasn't been finished, or even really in Alpha yet. YOU, the gamer, will be able to help me decide how the game should look, and therefore, what the screenshots and UI will look like. This project is gamer-participation from the GROUND UP, making it pretty unique, I think. :)

[Ricardo C]

And more than a little likely to be condemned to vaporware hell ;)

[papillon]

Sorry, but while I'm interested in your idea and tend to like your way of thinking, it doesn't sound like too fair a deal for me to pay YOU to become your co-developer/beta-tester :). Especially since the earlier the project, the less certain it is of getting finished... and since if there are other people involved who may have ideas directly opposed to mine, I'm not really guaranteed to get a huge value out of being in on it early.

I would suggest having multiple tiers of participation and charge a very low amount for people to get in on it when there's not much there - maybe as little as $5. Most people still won't be very interested (because who wants to pay for vaporware?), but your "fans" will, and they'll be getting a good bargain. Then when your first group has hammered out the basic engine, raise the entry cost for tier 2, where you can present screenshots and a much clearer focus of where the game is going.

[StormcloudCreations]

I've completed and put out 9 games in 5+ years in business, so it's not likely to become vaporware. :) I'm using the funds from the sales to partially fund development of the game as well. I would welcome anyone here who wants to join up, as having a game dev there would definitely give me a different perspective.

[Jack Norton]

edit: removed the links
Derek, I've tried some of your games and I like them (because they are similar to mine). However I suggest you remove those links at bottom of the page :)

[Pyabo]

What about the links at bottom of your homepage? sex toys, adult movies... not very professional :D

On the contrary... lots of people make a profession of this. :) It just doesn't really go along with the theme of the game.

[StormcloudCreations]

edit: removed the links
Derek, I've tried some of your games and I like them (because they are similar to mine). However I suggest you remove those links at bottom of the page :)

I suggest you send me the $100 a month I collect for having those at the bottom of the page, in small print. There strictly for a text link broker service I signed up for, and no endorsement is implied. :)

Hey, Jack..if you're interested in signing up for the pre-order thing, i'd like to have you there. You're a game dev veteran and design games kinda similar to mine, so we'd probably be on the same page. :D

[Jack Norton]

Ha ok 100$, I understand :D

I'd like to contribute but I'm already late with one game by 3 months :eek: and have to make also USM2 otherwise the holigaans will destroy my house!! :o

[Andy]

Hey, Jack..if you're interested in signing up for the pre-order thing, i'd like to have you there. You're a game dev veteran...

Game dev what? Am I assume correctly that you are speaking about Jack Norton?

He will be veteran by 20 years later. And I can assure you - would he survive he should be doing pretty well at that far times. But now I'd afraid this is too early to order him to veterans. He is just the really good guy so far. :D

REM: Guys may I? Legend, veteran etc. Let we leave such words for the appropriate cases when somebody will die (for example). No? ;)

[Robert Cummings]

What makes this different from every other well intentioned open source vapourware mmorpg, except we have to pay for the vapour?

I'm sure you understand how it sounds to me? Feel free to explain.

[Martoon]

Is there a money-back guarantee? Many (most?) of the developers here have a money back satisfaction guarantee for completed games. If I pay $16.95 for this, and five years later I see that's it's fizzled out, do I get my $16.95 back?

[StormcloudCreations]

What makes this different from every other well intentioned open source vapourware mmorpg, except we have to pay for the vapour?

I'm sure you understand how it sounds to me? Feel free to explain.

The differences are: I've finished and released 9 games already, so i'm not some guy who appeared out of nowhere and wants to make a game; I already have a guideline and early design docs in place already; and my dev cycles are usually pretty fast as well, and I design within my limits, no vast insane overzealous designs that I know won't ever be finished.

So there are a few differences. :)

[StormcloudCreations]

Is there a money-back guarantee? Many (most?) of the developers here have a money back satisfaction guarantee for completed games. If I pay $16.95 for this, and five years later I see that's it's fizzled out, do I get my $16.95 back?

With my latest newsletter message, I do offer a 30 day money back guarantee (at which point some early playable code of early parts of the game will be available to people to try out). Within the 30 days, you can request and get a refund if you aren't liking the direction of the game. I've been around 5+ years, and I stand behind my stuff.

[vjvj]

The differences are: I've finished and released 9 games already, so i'm not some guy who appeared out of nowhere and wants to make a game; I already have a guideline and early design docs in place already; and my dev cycles are usually pretty fast as well, and I design within my limits, no vast insane overzealous designs that I know won't ever be finished.

So there are a few differences. :)

I don't think his doubt (and mine) has anything to do with you, more the process itself. I have a hard time seeing any open source/open community game project ever shipping, all miracles aside...

I have confidence in my OWN ability to get work done, but I would never start an open source game with any delusions of it being finished.

[StormcloudCreations]

I don't think his doubt (and mine) has anything to do with you, more the process itself. I have a hard time seeing any open source/open community game project ever shipping, all miracles aside...

I have confidence in my OWN ability to get work done, but I would never start an open source game with any delusions of it being finished.

I considered that before starting, and the point is valid. I've watched several other "open source" projects, why they succeeded (or failed), and tried to steer clear of those type of obstacles. For one thing, I have made it clear to those users that *I* am the final arbiter of what gets added and what doesn't. A project like this needs a firm, experienced hand, and I like to think I am one of those. :)

Many of these projects fail because there is no focus, no direction to the project before it starts, and the devs end up trying to please everyone (which of course usually results in pleasing nobody). I have a pretty defined focus of what type of game I want this to be. I just want this community to saw away the rough edges, suggest things to make the game better while its being coded, so that I don't have to shoehorn things in after the fact.

My games have always been "Open community", just more by e-mail than in an open forum. I've always used community input and suggestions in all of my games, to tweak them and add things to them, and bug hunting. I believe that type of interaction with fans and users is what sets indies apart from EA, MS, etc.

Well anyway i'm babbling too much... :)

[Leper]

Is this project still active?

[Savant]

Andy
REM: Guys may I? Legend, veteran etc. Let we leave such words for the appropriate cases when somebody will die (for example). No?

http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=veteran

[StormcloudCreations]

Is this project still active?

It's still around, though its been put on hold for a possible project wih a large, well-known company that I have been given an opportunity to possibly develop (NDA prevents me from disclosing more than that). :) But its still around and will get finished, just a brief hiatus.